1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to firearm scopes, and specifically to device which increases the accuracy of firearms.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Firearm scopes are designed to compensate for the effect of gravity on bullets. Generally, the firearm barrel is carried at a slight upward angle relative to the firearm scope to project the bullet through an arc. Of course, since the firearm scope is aligned with the selected target, accuracy is optimized if the bullet's trajectory and the line of sight established by the firearm scope coincide a selected distance from the firearm. Highly accurate mechanisms are provided in firearm scopes to allow minute adjustments of the firearm scope to ensure that the scope sight and the bullet trajectory intersect.
The way the firearm is held by the shooter can have an impact on the firearm accuracy which is far from insignificant. Side to side tilt of the firearm is one significant source of inaccuracy. This "tilt" is often referred to as "canting" of the firearm. Most hunters and marksmen rely on their inner sense of balance to ensure that the firearm is not canted. This attitude presupposes that the shooter has a fully functional, unimpaired sense of balance, and that this sense of balance can somehow be translated over into the handling of the firearm.
Studies of airplane pilots reveal that the human sense of balance is easily confused by a number of influences, and that the pilot should disregard his or her feelings and trust the plane's instruments. The human sense of balance is likewise subject to a number of disorienting influences including rifle recoil, the loud sounds associated with shooting, the repeated focusing on distant targets as viewed through one eye, and prolonged periods of standing. A hunter is subjected to even more disorienting influences, including the elements (heat, cold, wind, rain, etc.) and rough and uneven terrain. In addition, hunters may spend hours of hiking through rough and unlevel terrain before firing one shot. Surely, the human sense of balance can be confused under such circumstances. However, mechanisms which alert the marksman or hunter to a tilt or cant in the bearing of his or her firearm have not been provided in firearm scopes.